Cats In The Cradle And The Silver Spoon
by BreeanneAlikay
Summary: What if Rick had never found Lori and Carl but had come across the Dixon brothers first? Rickyl chapter fanfiction!


_"If you're gonna wake up, do it now Rick" _

_His voice was urgent and wavering as though something was gaining on him, pushing him further away than he already was. There was a silent sigh and whimper escaping from the far from gracious male that towered over the limp officer, bed ridden by his condition. The taller man left his view, leaving behind him only loud noises and a pure state of confusion. Once again Rick had been left in the dark by his partner, with now only himself to fend for and rely on. Laying somewhere between conscious and complete dormancy, the lanky man pondered what sin was so great to have left him in such a state. He cared for his family, more than anything on this Earth and he had always been faithful to the woman he had fell in love with years ago. He admitted that their marriage had been loosening its strong hold as of late, he could still remember the last thing she had said to him before he had left for work that melancholy morning. _

_"Sometimes I wonder if you even care about us at all."_

_He had been furious at that statement. He gave everything he had and more to that woman and their young son and she accuses him of not caring. Of course now he regrets the spite, being unable to even lift an arm to indicate that he can hear every word, every prayer. _

_Carl had not once left his clouded thoughts. His innocent son having to become a man so soon after his father's demise was one of Rick's many horrific fears. Innocence was as foreign to him now as was it to many people which pushed Rick to sustain what was left of Carl's white light, his innocence. How was a child to stay innocent in a world like this? He watched these men being ordered to take the life away of a child and then that same monster being given a medal for his duties. He observed the rapists on the evening news getting less time in the joint than those who refuse to pay a fine. This wasn't the justice Rick had sorted to do unto others when he took his first steps into the police academy with his oldest and closest friend. _

_The number of internal sighs Rick had released was endless. None of the justice speeches would ever be heard and his poor child's innocence would without a doubt not stay intact for long. He had, on occasion, thought about ending it all to release himself from this confinement. It was as though he had been cuffed into his own body, trapped by an endless amount of "ifs" and "buts" and the occasional "maybe". There was no guarantee that he would ever be released from this prison, nor had there ever been. The doctors had always been painfully optimistic and there had always been a chance of full recovery but Rick had been able to see past those shielded windows to the soul in his trance like state, seeing only the truth behind the comforting smile of the middle aged and balding man. _

_It was in that moment that Rick had accepted his fate, mentally stretching his arms to either side and exposing his chest as if to say "Take me! I am ready!". Rick had always been a man of faith until his prayers in his darkest moments were never heard._

**_'"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future"'_**

Rick's eyes shot open, a deep needed breath being inhaled as his eyes scanned the four white walls that seemed as though they were closing in on him. His hand trailed down his chest to his bandaged wound as the memories began to flood back into his mind, a mental tsunami of sorts. He had been shot by a rogue criminal on the run, speeding into his town as another town's run off. It took all his strength just to reach over to the button beside his bed, its purpose to alert a professional when a patient is in need. Rick sat in silence awaiting the arrival of someone, anyone. When no one strolled through his room's door with comforting words about his family's perfect state of mind and body he decided to take things into his own hands. He wrapped his arms around the medical equipment that had at some point been connected to a needle that had punctured a vein to feed his once lifeless yet alive body. His had however underestimated his weakness, collapsing to the ground faster than he had left the bed.

"Help!" He had shouted with all the power he had left in him "Nurse!"

Once again left alone in a state of pure confusion, Rick forced himself off the cold tile flooring of the hospital room, limping to the door. He turned the handle, pushing harder than expected to get the door to let him go free, only to find that another patient's bed had been conveniently placed just outside of his room's door. He pushed his thoughts aside to continue his path down to the front desk, still calling out for anyone to hear. The lights surrounding him were flickering, some holding onto the ceiling for dear life as they swung from one side to another. The walls that had once been a pure, innocent white were stained with a grey sludge and a thick crimson spray of liquid. Though his mind told him otherwise, he refused to think about the possibility of the crimson being something more than a cheap paint job. The hallway had been significantly colder than his room with his bare feet numb against the tile as he trudged down it at the fastest pace his body would let him.

Reaching the desk he had found it just as he had thought it to be, abandoned. He tried to stay as calm as he could as he searched the desk for any indication of where all the staff could be, finding only the next option that had been on his agenda. He lifted the phone to his ear, praying for some kind of glorious miracle to save him and lead him to salvation. His imagination of the reunion between himself and his family had been cut short however by the dead silence of the device in his palm. He ran his hand through his short, dark hair with tears stinging his grey eyes.

Shaking his head of the emotions that had built up, he continued to walk down the hallway, blocking out the worst of thoughts that were now engraved into his mind. Reaching a door with a glass window that exposed more beaten fluorescent lights, his gaze moved slowly down to the floor of the room. He rubbed his eyes, considering pinching himself to prove that what he was witnessing was true and not a false reality or some sick dream. The nurses were limp against the wall, the back of their heads and brains written along the wall behind them and revealing no secrets as to what had happened. Rick backed away from the door slowly before spinning in the other direction, attempting to run as fast as he could away from what he had seen. He reached once again another door on the far side of the hospital stating clear instructions that he had muttered to himself continually as the doors were pushed against from those locked within.

"Don't Open, Dead Inside"

He opened a door not far from the one he had just seen that lead to a stairwell. The door closing right behind him, he was left in the dark and the unknown of the passageway. He lit a match, lighting his way slightly as he positioned himself on the step below. The match reached his fingers just as he was a few steps down, startling him and putting him off balance only slightly. He lit another, continuing his way down until he had reached yet another door of this maze of a hospital. He reached for the handle, pushing the door open as the sunlight blinded his newly opened eyes. He stepped out into the fresh air that he had been deprived of for weeks, only to be met with a foul stench that clung to his senses. His eyes adjusted to the light and revealed to him the cause of the unholy smell. Hundreds of bodies lay in front of him, all covered by a blanket as they were stacked in top of the other like animals. Some had been fed from as they had skin missing from their corpse.

Rick placed his fist to his mouth, trying to hold in what may come up when he heard a strong southern accent speak not too far from him

"They aint got shit on 'em, this is too risky"

Then another followed, this voice rougher and perhaps older than the first

"I aint gonna let ya get bit lil brother, y'know that. Now shut up and help me look"

Rick stepped down from where he had been standing, following the groans of the two men he had just heard bicker. He stepped carefully, avoiding coming in contact with the bodies. He turned a corner to spot two men rummaging through the pockets of the corpses that had been left further from the others, the older of the two looking up to stare at Rick.

"Who the hell are you?" His voice, no matter how rough, was like heaven to hear. He hadn't heard another human's voice in months

"Officer Rick Grimes"


End file.
